From his new book, The Good Son, here’s Mark Kriegel on Boom Boom Mancini.

Here’s Jason Bailey over at the Atlantic on Do The Right Thing.

Dig this gallery of collages by Laura Redburn over at Flavorwire.

The first nine outs today were strikeouts. Hiroki Kuroda (six) and Matt Moore (three), both dealing.

The Yanks scored first. Here’s out how it went down. Eduardo Nunez lead off the third with a walk, stole second and scored on a base hit by Derek Jeter. B.J. Upton missed the cut-off man and Jeter advanced to second. Small ballin’ Nick Swisher sacrificed him to third and down in the count, Alex Rodriguez lined a base hit to center. He moved to second on a wild pitch and then stole third as Robinson Cano walked.

Russell Martin fell behind, laid off a couple of nasty breaking balls, worked the count full and then popped a fastball over the fence in right field for a three-run home run.

With a five run lead, the usually luckless Kuroda had a cushion to work with. And when he gave up a solo home run to Ben Zobrist in the fourth, the Yanks scored a run in the bottom of the inning. But strange things awaited Kuroda and the Yanks in the sixth.

It began when Kuroda walked the ninth place hitter on a full count pitch to start the inning. Then, Desmond Jennings hit a slow grounder to third. Rodriguez charged, fielded it and made a nice throw to first but it wasn’t in time to get Jennings. So, Zobrist. Looked like Kuroda had him when he popped a ball in foul territory. Pearce tracked it and leaned into the stands. He brushed against a Mook in a Nick Swisher jersey who was trying to catch the ball, too. And the ball knocked off Pearce’s glove. The fan didn’t help but it was on Pearce–he should have made the catch.

Instead, Zobrist walked and the bases were loaded for Evan Longoria. Kuroda got him to hit a ground ball. It bounced toward Rodriguez and then took a high hop and went over his head. Runners on the corners, nobody out and the score was 6-3. But Kuroda didn’t break. He got a double play–which scored another run, and then a strike out.

And that was it for the scoring today. Dave Phelps worked into and out of trouble in the seventh, Robertson and Soriano did the voodoo that they do so well in the eighth and ninth to close it out.

Final Score: Yanks 6, Rays 4.

Yanks now five up on the Rays. The O’s and A’s game just started…

[Photo Via: Pug King]

It’s Hiroki and Hope today, another beautiful one in the BX.

1. Jeter DH
2. Swisher RF
3. A-Rod 3B
4. Cano 2B
5. Martin C
6. Jones LF
7. Granderson CF
8. Pearce 1B
9. Nunez SS

Never mind the glare: Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Via: mOrtality]

Cause that’s how we’re livin’.

On a gorgeous early autumn day in New York the Yankees beat the Rays, 5-3. It was another close one–the Rays had the tying runs on base in the ninth before Rafael Soriano got the final out–but no complaints here. Bitching at this point of the season when your team wins is unseemly.

The story of the day was Ivan Nova who was terrific. He gave the Yanks the kind of performance they’ve needed from CC Sabathia. Curtis Granderson and Eduardo Nunez hit back-to-back home runs against James Shields early, Derek Jeter added an RBI single later on, and Alex Rodriguez drove home an insurance run with an RBI base hit in the eighth.

Yes, today was good in Yankeeland.

Head on over to the ol’ Lo Hud for more.

[Photo Credit: Alex Trautwig/Getty Images]

Another day, another tough starting pitcher goes for the Rays. This time, it’s James Shields. The Yanks counter with Ivan Nova.

1. Ichiro LF
2. Jeter DH
3. Cano 2B
4. A-Rod 3B
5. Ibanez RF
6. Swisher 1B
7. Granderson CF
8. Nunez SS
9. Stewart C

Never mind the bitchin’ and moanin’: Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Via: Atmospheric Photography]

It’s always a good time for Hank.

Long Gone Lonesome Blues (Single Version)

[Photo Via: Lovely Derriere]

It was the fifth inning and the Yankees were in trouble. CC Sabathia had protected a 1-0 lead since the second (in itself a minor miracle) but that lead was history. The Rays now led 2-1, had the bases loaded, and, if the root canal wasn’t painful enough sir, here’s a kick in the shin with a steel-tipped boot: Evan Longoria was at the plate with nobody out.

Sabathia threw a tub of junk at him and up 0-2 in the count, got Longoria to bounce to third. Alex Rodriguez, whose leather was strong and supple in all the right places tonight, charged. He had everything in front of him: the ball, the third base bag, the runner racing home and Longoria breaking for first. He had a fraction of a second to decide what to do and three options, none of them perfect.

He could fire home and prevent the run from scoring. That would keep the score 2-1, and with David Price on the mound for the Rays, every run is precious. But the bases would still be loaded and there’d only be one out. He could step on third and sling the ball across the diamond hoping for a double play. He’d concede a run but he’d give Sabathia the chance to end the inning with an out. Or he could step on third and still try to cut the run off at the plate. The degree of difficulty on that play is absurd. The runner might beat the throw home anyway, and to make a perfect throw, on the run, with no angle… and the catcher still has to block the plate and make the tag.

Alex chose the 5-3 double play and I immediately thought two things: 1) Good for you Alex. You are showing belief in your team that you can score a couple of more runs in this game. 2) The Yankees probably just lost this game.

The Yankees never did take the lead again, but it would be inaccurate to say they lost the game there in the fifth. No, the Yanks had some runs in their tank tonight. Curtis Granderson homered off David Price. Eduardo Nunez ripped a single off the leg of third base umpire Jerry Meals. The bad news is that it was clearly going to be a double. The good news is that it hurt. The bad news outweighed the good news unfortunately, because had the inning played out the same way with Nunez starting at second, he scores the tying run. As it was, he was rounding third when Elliot Johnson dove to snag Arod’s dribbler. It was ticketed for right field, but the ball was in no hurry to get there.

The Rays padded their lead in an especially disheartening fashion. CC Sabathia, if you remember from opening day, is supposed to have some kind of Jedi mind trick in place when pitching to Carlos Pena. Pena drew a crucial walk in the three-run fifth and led off the seventh with an infield single. Neither was as loud as the grand slam from April 6th, but CC’s inabilty to retire Pena was a big part of another loss.

Elliot Johnson tried to bunt Pena to second, only CC jumped on the bunt and erased the lead runner. Yay. Johnson stole second and scored by a whisker on a two out single to center. Fuck. Pena would never have scored on that hit. B.J. Upton hit a tall homer in the eighth. It was 5-2 and all those close decisions that would have made this an agonizing loss didn’t seem to matter so much.

Then Derek jeter pounded a single into the right field corner and Alex Rodriguez hit a vintage 2007-era blast to left and made the score 5-4. Oh it’s an agonizing loss again, that’s better. The Rays turned a bloop, a steal and an ghastly error by Nunez into an unnecessary insurance run and made the final score 6-4.

In the seventh, Ben Zobrist squared up a high fastball right down the middle from Sabathia and stroked a blue dart back through the box. It was a bad pitch, but Zobrist didn’t miss it. He also didn’t try to do too much with the high heat. The Rays scored a vital run with two outs. In the eighth, Curtis Granderson tapped a grounder to second with two outs and the tying run on second and go-ahead run on first. It was a lousy swing, but it was also an excellent pitch, a strike, but low and away where Granderson couldn’t get good wood to it. The Rays got the vital out and protected their slim lead.

It’s not that simple, but it’s not that complicated either.

It’s C.C. vs. David Price, fat vs. skinny, tonight in the Boogie Down. C.C., how we need ya, papi.

The Rays just got swept in Baltimore. Will they score runs this weekend now that they’re playing our boys? The Yanks are up against tough-ass pitching, can they rediscover the Score Truck?

So many questions.

1. Jeter DH
2. Swisher RF
3. A-Rod 3B
4. Cano 2B
5. Martin C
6. Jones LF
7. Granderson CF
8. Pearce 1B
9. Nunez SS

Never mind the Cy Young candidate in the Rays uniform: Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Picture Via: Comic Book Artwork]

One Step Beyond.

Good, long profile by Alexsandar Hemon on the Wachowskis and their new movie Cloud Atlas in the New Yorker. I wasn’t riveted by the Matrix-and I think I only saw the first one–but I’m curious to see Cloud Atlas after reading this piece.

Blend of the Year. Download Now.

The Best Word Ever? Click here.

In three games against the Red Sox, the Yankees went 2-34 with runners in scoring position. They won two of those games which gives you an idea of just how bad the Sox are. That they didn’t sweep them is proof how how unstable the Yanks are.

Oh yeah, both hits with runners in scoring position came from Derek Jeter. His bloop double in the seventh gave the Yanks the slimmest of cushions and Phil Hughes did the rest, with some help from Boone Logan, David Robertson, and Rafael Soriano. Hughes was outstanding, never mind Boston’s anemic line up. Like David Phelps last night, Hughes delivered.

The Yanks win, 2-0 and remain tied for first with the Orioles.

Exhale.

[Photo Credit: Joel Zimmer]

Phil Hughes goes against the Boston Red Sox C Squad tonight. No excuses, just win.

Derek Jeter DH
Nick Swisher RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Russell Martin C
Andruw Jones LF
Curtis Granderson CF
Steve Pearce 1B
Eduardo Nunez SS

Never mind dem angry boids’: Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Creative Review]

Without much fanfare, Curtis Granderson established a new single season franchise record for most strikeouts by a Yankee batter. Ironically, Granderson’s 170th strikeout came against Aaron Cook, whose 1.98 K/9 rate is the lowest among all pitchers with at least 80 innings. Otherwise, the centerfielder’s prolific accumulation of strikeouts hasn’t been surprising. After all, the record he broke was his own.

Most Strikeouts, Total and Rate, in Yankee History, Since 1901

Note: Qualified seasons only for rate list.
Source: Baseball-reference.com

In addition to holding the new Yankee record for most strikeouts, Granderson’s K rate of 28.4% also ranks first among all qualified seasons in franchise history, surpassing the previous high of 26.3% set by Jesse Barfield in 1990. However, the left handed slugger hasn’t been the only Yankee with a propensity for striking out. Nick Swisher’s rate of 23.5% would also rank among the top 10, and as a team, the Bronx Bombers have struck out more frequently than at any point in their long history.

Yankees’ K Rate (Offense), Since 1901

Note: Rate is a percentage of plate appearances.
Source: fangraphs.com 

The Yankees’ record setting strikeout pace extends to both sides of the ball. The pitching staff’s 8.17 strikeouts per nine innings currently represent the highest total in franchise history, besting the 7.85 figure posted in 2001. Although no pitchers are in line to break a record on their own, C.C. Sabathia’s K/9 rate of 8.82 is good for fourth on the team’s all-time list (qualified seasons only).

Yankees’ K Rate (Pitching), Since 1901

Note: Rate is per nine innings.
Source: fangraphs.com

Strikeouts have not only been popular in the Bronx, but across the major leagues as well. In fact, the league-wide K rates this season have been the highest recorded since 1901. Since the early 1980s, strike outs have been on gradual increase throughout the game, but that trend has accelerated in the last five years. As a result, the Yankees’ record setting rates don’t really stand out when compared to the league leaders. On offense, the Bronx Bombers actually have struck out below the MLB average of 19.7%, leading to a ranking in the bottom third of the lead. On the pitching side, the Yankees do rank third in the American League and sixth in the majors, but the team’s punch out percentage isn’t far above the norm.

Historical Strikeouts Rates (Offense), Since 1913

Source: fangraphs.com

Historical Strikeouts Rates (Pitching), Since 1901

Source: fangraphs.com

There are lots of theories that could explain the accelerating increase in strikeouts. PED withdrawal, a new crop of young, strong-armed pitchers, umpire evaluation technology that has forced an expansion in the strike zone, and bullpen specialization are theories that either by themselves or in conjuction could be responsible for the upward trend. Regardless of the reason, baseball is the midst of the golden age of the strikeout, so players like Curtis Granderson shouldn’t hang their heads in shame. Besides, nothing beats a nice cool breeze in the summer anyway.

Chad Jennings has the skinny on the tentative 2013 schedule.

[Photo Credit: N.Y. Daily News]

Via Kottke dig Jacqueline Lou Skagg’s paintings on pennies.

If DJ can stand tonight, he’ll play tonight.

Meanwhile, over at River Ave Blues, Mike Axisa maps out the starting rotation for the rest of the year.

[Photo Credit: N.Y. Daily News]